Bharatanatyam, which originated in the southern Indian state of Tamil Nadu, is one of seven classical dance forms found in India and is arguably the most popular of the traditional arts.

As a culmination of about seven to 12 years of training, students of the dance perform an arangetram, which signals the dancer's readiness to perform publicly.

Having performed on stage several times before, however, Paridhi, 15, and Mallika, 16, both students of the Jakarta International School, were comfortable with the notion of a graduation recital.

"It was so cool to have our own show," said Paridhi, daughter of the Indian Charges d'Affaires, Muktesh Pardeshi. Mallika, daughter of Madhura and Vikram Reddy, added that she was "surprisingly relaxed throughout the show".

Such confidence was justified by the sheer energy and grace with which both dancers performed their 90-minute set of duet and solo pieces that displayed not only their immense talent, but also of the intricacies of Bharatanatyam.

Wearing vibrant blues and pinks, delicate jewelry and anklets that looked heavy yet sounded like a light drizzle, Mallika and Paridhi revealed over the course of an extensive repertoire the two main facets of Bharatanatyam: pure dance, which exemplifies the discipline of technique and provides aesthetic pleasure in its geometric forms and poses, and expressive dance, which contemplates the music and lyrics (if any) and interprets them for the audience.

The girls later likened the program of the evening to meandering through the concentric structure of a temple.

The dancer begins on the outside by offering customary flowers; within the hallways, pure dances convey the anticipation she feels on approaching god; a long piece then combines pure and expressive dance to bring the dancer to the threshold of the shrine; she enters the shrine and praises god with beautifully choreographed expressive dances. The finale is a euphoric celebration of the encounter with god.

The dancers' ability to strike and hold a body-bending pose or to depict Lord Rama in several different ways within the same piece left the audience nothing short amazed at such an exhibition of talent at this young age.

Even the use of subtly changing facial expressions - a nuance often overlooked in dance - played a significant role in conveying meanings that may not have been apparent to the audience.

The dancers were accompanied by a live ensemble of vocals, flute, violin and mridangam (percussion) from the Singapore Indian Fine Arts Society (SIFAS), who deepened the professional dimension of the recital. One member of the ensemble, on percussive vocals, was Guru Janaki Shrikanth, who has been living and teaching Bharatanatyam in Jakarta for more than 10 years.

Having trained Mallika for five years and Paridhi for two, and having rehearsed all holidays for this recital - at times as a 9-to-5 job - Guru Shrikanth was relieved at the girls' success at their arangetram.

"The audience judges both guru and students *during an arangetram*," Shrikanth said. "Both Mallika and Paridhi are the most committed students I've seen and the resilience with which they prepared *for this recital* is commendable.

"Besides pride, I feel immense satisfaction that they will continue to learn *Bharatanatyam*."

Indeed the girls declared immediately after their recital that they intended to continue learning the dance.

When asked what in particular would motivate such young people to dedicate themselves to a traditional art form, Paridhi and Mallika - both of whom have grown up outside India - admitted dancing made them feel "definitely more Indian" and allowed them to "appreciate traditions of that land".

Bharatanatyam, which was first mastered as an expression of devotion by devdasis (female devotees or brides of god), had developed by the late 18th century into a story-telling art for the entertainment of royal courts. Thus engulfing much symbolic content from the Hindu epics, the dance form was brought back from the "vulgarity" of pure amusement and took its current form only in the 1920s.

"Bharatanatyam tells you stories," Paridhi said. "*It* has kept me connected with Indian culture . and I would continue with it, maybe not as a career but definitely as my passion. Because of this experience I have become more curious about other types of dance forms and mythologies around the world."

Mallika echoed this interest, saying that she would go on to explore other Indian classical dances because most of all, she had fun dancing.

The writer is an intern at The Jakarta Post.

Popular

Indonesia not affected by Southeast Asia-wide heat wave: BMKG

Residents fear for safety as Mount Ruang volcano erupts

In defense of Indonesian democracy